Background: Specific Aims: Minority populations, the poor, the elderly, and persons in intercity and rural communities continue to shoulder an unequal burden with regard to cancer incidence and mortality and are less likely to participate in screening. While barriers to participation in cancer screening are still poorly understood, even less is known about the experiences and barriers faced by patients and their significant others (spouse, family member, caregiver) once they are diagnosed with cancer. For example, cancer fatalism (the belief that death is inevitable when cancer is present), lack of knowledge of cancer, lack of awareness of cancer-related resources, fear, mistrust, and limited financial resources have been identified as barriers to participation in cancer screening (Baker, 1998; Chang & Hirsh, 1994; Powe & Weinrich, 2001; Womeodu & Bailey, 1996). Yet once a person is diagnosed with cancer, it is not known whether these barriers change or remain constant. Further, it is not known whether these barriers, if present, influence the patient's psychosocial, physical, and emotional well being during their cancer treatment. Moreover, the importance of a patient's significant other in their cancer experiences cannot be overlooked. This social support system is a critical factor, which is believed to buffer the stress of illness for patients. Hence, the patient's significant other frequently accompanies the patient to appointments and may be an integral part of their health care experience. While the significant other is often viewed as a source of emotional support and as a caregiver, this person is often not viewed as a person who may need information about cancer screening and early detection for themselves. In other words, the fact that the significant other accompanies the patient to their appointments may provide an optimal opportunity to assess their knowledge, attitudes, and beliefs about cancer and to begin to implement strategies to facilitate their participation in cancer screening and early detection behaviors. Yet previous research to address these issues among these unique dyads is limited, particularly with an emphasis on underserved populations.